Value Unleashed

Articles - May 2019

Know your Buyers is a three-part series by Valitas Capital Partners for business owners. It is designed to help owners consider the types of buyers that are in the market, how those buyers perceive value, and the advantages and disadvantages associated with each.

In this instalment of the series, Valitas discusses financial buyers. In May, we will explore strategic buyers and, in June, Valitas will present different business scenarios and how the type of buyer impacts sales strategy and the outcome in each case.

Last week yielded a blockbuster deal in the Canadian oil patch: Cenovus Energy announced the acquisition of ConocoPhillips Co.’s oil sands assets for the mega price of C$17.7 billion. The deal arrived on the heels of Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.’s C$11.1 billion acquisition of oil sands assets from Royal Dutch Shell Plc, and reflects the ongoing oil sands consolidation by major Canadian companies.

This activity is consistent with findings in a recent Mergermarkets/Tory’s report relating to expectations for the Canadian Oil and Gas sector in 2017. Respondents to the survey were optimistic about deal activity for the current year, with 67% expressing a belief that volume would increase. We discuss the challenges likely to drive 2017 M&A in our full article...

The panel will discuss a critical component for any successful business transition: how to select the ideal exit team when you sell your business.

The successful sale of your business involves many moving parts, making it the largest and possibly the most complicated transaction of your life. You can’t do this alone, you will need a team of professionals to help you successfully sell your company. The right team will get you the best price, terms and most importantly, ensure that the transaction closes.

After attending this session, you will understand what the ideal exit team looks like and how to select the best advisors for your business. You’ll also learn what your exit team will cost and how they’ll be paid.

The panel will discuss a critical component for any successful business transition: how to select the ideal exit team when you sell your business.

The successful sale of your business involves many moving parts, making it the largest and possibly the most complicated transaction of your life. You can’t do this alone, you will need a team of professionals to help you successfully sell your company. The right team will get you the best price, terms and most importantly, ensure that the transaction closes.

After attending this session, you will understand what the ideal exit team looks like and how to select the best advisors for your business. You’ll also learn what your exit team will cost and how they’ll be paid.

The mega-deal is back…Global Q1 2017 M&A activity featured higher deal value and lower deal count. But did Canada’s deal making reflect this trend? And how did Canada’s middle market fare? Read our full article to find out.

I recently attended a seminar at Torys, one of Canada’s leading law firms. The room was packed with men and women in blue suits (actually, mostly men). Bankers from the big five were at nearby tables. And the focus of the seminar was…Recreational Cannabis.

With the release of the draft Cannabis Act (Bill C-45) on April 13, opportunities in the sector are scaling, and with them, support from top tier Canadian law firms like Torys and Blakes (who will be holding their own Cannabis Round Table on May 2). In this week’s article, we share some of the insights gleaned from the Torys seminar – insights that are not apparent on a straightforward reading of the draft legislation.

In the opening pages of Trump: The Art of the Deal, Donald Trump describes his work style:

“I play it very loose…I prefer to come to work each day and just see what develops.”

This approach was recently highlighted in President Donald Trump’s rumblings about trade policy with Canada. Last week, after a visit to Wisconsin, he remarked that “[i]n Canada, some very unfair things have happened to our dairy farmers, and others, and we're going to start working on that.” This was followed by an announcement that a tariff of approximately 20% would be imposed on Canadian softwood lumber imported to the U.S.. Then came media reports that Trump was going to sign an executive order withdrawing the U.S. from NAFTA, a plan that was reversed after emergency calls with Mexican President Peña Nieto and our own Prime Minister Trudeau. Thursday morning, President Trump tweeted: “Relationships are good – deal very possible!”. It’s been quite a couple of weeks.

Where does this trade policy uncertainty leave us in Canada? What are the implications for our own economy, and more specifically, for Canadian M&A deal activity?